Yard Drainage and French Drains in Greer, SC
Clay holds it. We move it.
Greer has tripled in size since 2000, and nearly every one of those new houses sits on graded red clay. Clay does not let water through. It sits on top, in the back yard, against the slab, in the strip between two houses. McKinley gives it a way out with regrading, swales, buried downspouts and French drains to an outlet.
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Yard drainage in Greer
A peach town that became a subdivision town
Greer straddles the Greenville-Spartanburg county line, between the airport and the BMW plant. It was a textile and peach town of under 17,000 people in 2000. By 2020 it had over 35,000, and the city's own estimate now passes 50,000. Almost all of that is subdivisions on what used to be orchards, pasture and cotton fields.
To build those, the ground was stripped and graded, and what is left on top is Piedmont red clay with a few inches of sod over it. That clay is the whole drainage story here. Rain does not soak in. It runs to the lowest spot it can find and waits.
The back yard that is a pond for a week
The typical Greer call is a back yard that holds water for days after rain, with a mud patch where the dog runs and grass that will not take. The lot was graded flat, the lots behind it drain into it, and the clay underneath is as tight as a basin.
On clay the answer is mostly on the surface. McKinley regrades so the yard falls toward one line and cuts a shallow swale along it to the lowest corner. From there the water gets a pipe out to a ditch, a storm inlet or the street. A French drain helps where there is a real low spot to drain, but on clay it needs that outlet or it just fills. The guide to French drains versus regrading explains the choice.
Water at the slab
Most Greer houses are on slabs, and water standing against a slab finds its way under it and into the garage or the bottom of the wall. The usual causes are downspouts emptying at the corners, mulch beds built up higher than the slab and the side yard graded toward the house.
The downspouts are buried in solid pipe to a discharge point away from the house. The beds and the strip along the foundation are cut back so the ground falls away. If the side yard between two houses is the trough, a swale or a catch basin with pipe out takes care of it. M&S does not do gutters or waterproofing. It fixes the ground.
Helene from the Upstate side
Helene reached Greer as wind more than water. Trees came down on roads and houses across both counties, nearly everyone lost power, and the creeks ran at moderate to major flood for a day or two. The South Tyger River on the north side of town was one of them.
In the subdivisions, what the storm left behind was a lot of pulled-up root balls, torn-up lawns and drainage that had been borderline and was now broken. A yard that had been wet for years became a yard that would not drain at all. Those are the jobs that have come in since.
The city, the counties and SC811
Inside city limits, the City of Greer's engineering department handles stormwater and land disturbance under the city's stormwater ordinance. Outside the city, the lot falls to either Greenville County or Spartanburg County depending on which side of the line it is on. A yard drainage job is small, but a pipe to the street or a change near a drainage easement is worth a call first.
SC811 marks member utilities before any digging, and South Carolina law requires the notice. Private lines such as irrigation and a line to a detached garage are not marked, so point them out.
Clearing, concrete and the price
On a bigger Greer lot the drainage problem is sometimes a strip of woods at the back that has grown up and holds water against the yard. Land clearing in Greer handles that. A cracked patio in the way of the swale comes out under concrete removal in Greer.
McKinley walks the lot with you, free, and gives one figure with the grading and hauling in it. The main drainage page covers the full range, and the Greer service area page lists everything M&S does on this side of the state line.
Yard Drainage & French Drains
Yards that never dry, water against the house, seeping hillsides: French drains, regrading, catch basins and buried downspouts.
See the serviceTalk to McKinley(828) 540-6856
Call or text McKinley with where the water stands and how long it stays. He comes down from Asheville, walks the lot and gives you a number.
Call nowWhat that covers
- Regrading and swales. A clay lot reshaped so water runs to one line and out.
- Buried downspouts. Roof water carried in solid pipe away from the slab.
- French drains. Perforated pipe in stone where there is a low spot and a real outlet.
- Catch basins. The trough between two houses given a grate and a pipe to the street.
Greer, SC
On the Greenville-Spartanburg county line, one of the fastest-growing towns in South Carolina, with subdivisions built on former farmland and red clay under all of it.
Town pageAlso in GreerDemolition in Greer, SC
See the pageAlso in GreerConcrete Removal in Greer, SC
See the pageAlso in GreerLand Clearing in Greer, SC
See the pageAlso in GreerForestry Mulching in Greer, SC
See the pageThe serviceYard Drainage & French Drains
Yards that never dry, water against the house, seeping hillsides: French drains, regrading, catch basins and buried downspouts.
Main service pageGreer and the towns nearby
Greer is the west end of the Upstate work, an hour down I-26 from the Asheville base. McKinley does the same clay-lot drainage east in Boiling Springs and in Spartanburg, and the mountain version of it back up the interstate in Hendersonville and Fletcher, where the water comes down a slope instead of sitting on clay. The Greer service area page lists everything M&S does here, from land clearing and forestry mulching to gravel drives, pads and concrete removal.
You get McKinley. Not a crew he sent.
You call
You call or text. McKinley comes out and looks at the job with you, on the ground, rather than pricing it off a photograph.
A number first
You get one figure before anything starts, with the hauling and the finish grading in it.
He runs the machine
Then he shows up and runs the machine himself.
Ground left usable
Voids get filled, water is given a way out, and the ground is left so you can build, pour or seed.
Photos of his work.
These are photographs from actual jobs. See more recent work. Or read about the full yard drainage & french drains service.
Questions people ask
Not seeing yours? Call (828) 540-6856 and ask McKinley, or read the guides.
Why does my yard in Greer hold water for days?
Red clay. The subdivision lot was graded flat on clay that water cannot soak into, so rain runs to the low spot and sits. Regrading, a swale and a pipe to an outlet move it. A French drain only helps where there is somewhere lower to send the water.
Water pools against my slab. Is that a drainage job?
Yes. Usually it is downspouts at the corners, mulch beds built up above the slab and the side yard graded toward the house. McKinley buries the downspouts, cuts the grade back so it falls away and gives the side yard a swale or catch basin.
Will a French drain work in clay?
Only with a real outlet. On clay the trench fills and holds water like a bathtub unless the pipe falls to a ditch, inlet or daylight. McKinley checks for that outlet first, and often regrading does more on a Greer lot.
Do I need a permit for yard drainage in Greer?
Inside the city, Greer's engineering department handles stormwater and land disturbance. Outside, it is Greenville or Spartanburg County depending on the side of the line. A yard drain rarely needs a permit, but a pipe to the street is worth a call. SC811 marks utilities first.
How much does yard drainage cost in Greer?
How much regrading is needed, the length of pipe, how far to an outlet and whether downspouts or a catch basin are part of it. The walk-through is free and the figure you get is the whole job, hauling included.
Other work he takes on
Most jobs end up being two or three of these at once, and they get quoted together.
Yard Drainage & French Drains in other towns
Gravel Driveways
A new drive cut into the hill, based in lifts and crowned to shed water.
Learn moreDriveway Repair & Grading
Washouts, ruts and potholes fixed at the cause, not just regraded.
Learn moreDrainage & Erosion Control
French drains, catch basins, culverts and riprap so the property sheds water.
Learn moreRetaining Walls
Block, boulder and riprap walls that hold a cut bank up.
Learn moreLand Clearing
Lots, building sites and overgrown acreage cleared, stumps and root mat out.
Learn moreHouse Pads & Site Prep
Pads cut, filled and compacted on ground that started at anything but level.
Learn moreFree estimate in Greer.
Where it is, how long the drive is, how steep it gets and what it is doing now. We come out, walk it, and give you a real number.
- Free on-site estimates across WNC and the Upstate
- One crew from clearing through to the last load of stone
- Drainage designed in, not sold to you afterwards
Need yard drainage in Greer?
Call or text McKinley. He walks the ground before he gives you a price.